"Frank S. Duke, Jr." <dukefs[at]one.net> wrote
- quote -

I have. Client died, no surviving spouse, and I didn't want
to hassle the kids about the payment.

--
Paul A. Thomas, CPA
Athens, Georgia
taxman at negia.net

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- quote -

Actually, you can get CPE for Block courses. It's valid for
EAs; don't know about CPAs.

--
Don EA in Upstate NY

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WHAT Big Money??? I rarely make a any money on doing income
tax. It is in my blood and I have to keep my three
remaining brain cells active some way or another....

Missy Doyle

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- quote -

"Trust me, I'm a good guy.", he said! I once had a client
ask if I needed ID for a check he was going to give me in
payment for a return. My reply was, "I already know your
SSN, name and DOB as well as those of your spouse and all
your kids. I know where you work and how much you earn,
where you live, were you bank, and where you invest. If I
don't trust that I who who you are at this point, I never
will."

A side note is that almost all my new clients come to me in
the off season and we develop an extensive relationship
before I do a current return. I never demand payment in
advance of delivery and often it is sent several weeks after
filing. I trust my clients and they trust me. I have never
had to write off a return.

All freely provided advice guarantee correct or double your
money back

Frank S. Duke, Jr. CPA
Cincinnati, OH USA

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Hugh at tax[at]together-dot-net.no-spam.invalid wrote:

- quote -

So what makes CPAs exempt? That is how I got started
(before I was a CPA but after I got an MBA in taxation). It
was the last time I prepared a comprehensive multi-schedule
tax return on paper with a pencil. It makes you humble.
Block training is good practical experience. You won't get
any CPEs for it but you will learn a lot more than you will
in a lot of CPE credit courses. It is generally taught by
the office manager for whom you might work. They want to be
sure you know your stuff.

All freely provided advice guarantee correct or double your
money back

Frank S. Duke, Jr. CPA
Cincinnati, OH USA

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The Hawk has got that right. 16 yrs ago (lst retirement)
took Block Basic Course and worked (40 hrs per wk) entire
tax season for Block. WOW, 250 returns later (all by hand in
those days) I was in a semi-stupor to say the least. It was
a heck of a learning experience (they even paid me though
not much, computed to less than $5 per hr) and I thank the
friend who told me to take the Block basic course which
taught me how LITTLE I knew about taxes. Block is still,
for my money, the best place to get your feet wet in the tax
business unless you are a CPA etc. After getting your feet
wet you can expand your wings and make the BIG money like
most of the professionals on this board!

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"Frank S. Duke, Jr." <dukefs[at]one.net> wrote

- quote -

Yeah, but what is really cool, or scary if you want to look
at it that way, is that you have their SSN (and date of
birth, etc) as well.

--
Paul A. Thomas, CPA
Athens, Georgia
taxman at negia.net

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Reno Master" <Reno_MasterNO[at]SPAMhotmail.com> wrote:

- quote -

State regulations aside, the only requirement the IRS has is
that you are paid for your tax preparation services; that
you are not doing volunteer work such as the VITA program or
AARP group.

Hope this helps,
Russell Tuncap, CMA, CPA
www.tuncap.com

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Reno Master at Reno_MasterNO[at]SPAMhotmail.com wrote:

- quote -

Body temperature somewhere in the neighborhood of 98.6F is
about it. I think that HRB requires a high school diploma
and 80% on the final exam of the introductory course they
teach.

Liability insurance is a good idea, although I did not have
it for the first 7 years. Certification as a CPA or EA
improves your credibility a lot and allows you to
"represent" your client before the IRS. A PTIN helps you
avoid giving out your Social Security number to a bunch of
people you don't really know. None of this is required.

All freely provided advice guarantee correct or double your
money back

Frank S. Duke, Jr. CPA
Cincinnati, OH USA

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California lets the accounting profession regulate accountants.
Paid tax preparers are regulated (fees, 60 hours education,
high school, continuing education) unless one is an enrolled
agent, CPA, or lawyer.

I'm not sure how well the educational requirements are monitored.
I once had a "tax preparer" ask me where one placed, on a tax return,
the money from a loan............

Nan, EA in LA

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Reno_MasterNO[at]SPAMhotmail.com says...

- quote -

A pulse!

To become a good preparer, that's a different matter. I
recommend doing some simpler returns by hand. That way you
get an idea of how the numbers flow through the forms. You
may think "computers do the work" but when there is a glitch
in the software, you need to know that there is a mistake
and how to fix it.

Gary

--
E-mail to the above address is rarely read. If you want to contact me
directly, please send an e-mail to: gary at gdgoodman dot com.

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Reno Master wrote:

- quote -

In Oklahoma, all you need is someone willing to pay you to
prepare their individual tax return. IME, that's not a
terribly high hurdle.

Phoebe

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I think you have to be sober... each year HRblock sobers
up a whole fleet of new recruits to handle their walk in
traffic.

the hawk

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"Reno Master" <Reno_MasterNO[at]SPAMhotmail.com> wrote

- quote -

In general, none. There are often licensing requirements at
the local or state level, but those are often the same as any
other business venture.

There may be some states (California comes to mind) that have
specific licensing for tax or accounting work.

--
Paul A. Thomas, CPA
Athens, Georgia
taxman at negia.net

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Certification of some kind? If so, what and from whom?
Liability insurance? a PTIN? anything else? TIA for all
replies.

RM

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